Surely the reader remembers the movie “The wolf of Wall Street” and it is very likely that you have not missed the film where Leonardo Di Caprio shows himself as an expert stockbroker, almost as if he had never done anything else in his life. The cinematic narrative for which the Hollywood actor is remembered was inspired by the autobiography of Jordan Belfortwhose history is worth reviewing.
Belfort was born in New York in 1962 and began his career in the financial world as a stock market operator in the 1990s. Shortly after starting his activity he founded his own firm, Stratton Oakmont, which became the core of one of the largest securities scams in American history. Through unethical and deceptive practices, Belfort and his firm amassed a fortune, but at enormous moral and legal cost.
Accused in 1998 of fraud, money laundering and stock market manipulation, after collaborating with the FBI, he was imprisoned in federal prison for 22 months convicted of “pump and dump (“pump and dump”), a form of stock fraud, which involves the holder of a share, who knows of its poor future potential and uses disinformation campaigns to overvalue said asset or uses his influence in the media to attract new investors , which artificially raise its price.
This maneuver resulted in a loss of US$200 million for investors. And Belfort had to compensate its former clients with US$110.4 million.
He met Tommy Chong in prison, who encouraged him to write his stories and publish them. Two films originated from these publications: “The Wolf of Wall Street” and “Catching the Wolf of Wall Street.” After his release from prison, his friendship remained.
How did Belfort direct his life after prison?
He became a motivational speaker and sales consultant, using his experience to teach others about business ethics and how to avoid the mistakes he made.
In his conferences and seminars, Belfort emphasizes – as he publicly announces – the “importance of integrity and responsibility in business. Through his own story, he illustrates the destructive consequences of greed and misconduct, offering a unique perspective on how to build sustainable and ethical businesses.”
These days Belfort, 61, is a consultant and sales advisor and charges tens of thousands of dollars to give private sessions.
Cryptocurrencies: a recent convert
Some time ago, Belfort recorded a video on YouTube about the dangers of bitcoin, which he called “vile madness” and “delirium of the masses”. However, he says that over the years he changed his mind, as he learned more about cryptocurrencies.
At the time, Belfort feared that US regulations could slow Bitcoin adoption, as China has tried to do, but that has not happened so far.
Now, Belfort is an investor in a few startups, including a new NFT platform and an animal-themed digital project that he says “tries to take the ecosystem of dogs and other pets and put it on the blockchain.”
Source: Ambito
